Hearts on Fire 1: Serefina (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Dixie Lynn Dwyer

  He reached for her, and as they headed back down the stairs, they both heard a rumbling sound. She turned to look at Matt, and his eyes widened and then he shoved her hard. So hard she went flying into the metal door and the small platform of concrete. She was stunned from the hit, and when she looked at him, the staircase collapsed, the floor caved in, and Matt disappeared into the flames below. She screamed at the top of her lungs as she reached for him when the platform gave and she fell, too. She felt the fire against her side, the pain as she landed on something hard, and then a throbbing in her head.

  Matt! She cried out until there was nothing but darkness.

  Serefina screamed out as she sat up in bed. She was sweating, her body shaking as she looked around her bedroom. She felt the nauseous sensation in her gut, but she didn’t get that urge to run to the bathroom and vomit.

  She glanced at the clock. Seven a.m. It was time to get up. She needed to finish packing her things and getting the car ready. After nine months of fighting her parents and her brothers as they begged her to move back home after the fire, she finally gave in. Living out here without Matt just wasn’t the same. Twelve firefighters lost their lives in that fire. Never mind the one hundred and thirteen innocent people who died inside. It had been the largest number of casualties from a fire at a club in the state’s history.

  She rolled out of bed and only felt the slight pinch of pain. Or maybe she didn’t. Maybe it was already disappearing and her need to hold on to to some pain, some effect of the fire was her own attempt at holding on to Matt. She stood up. Her broken ribs were fully healed. The collapsed lung, the severed spleen, and the third-degree burns were nearly invisible. But not to her. Every time she looked in the mirror, or ran her hands over her waist and hip bone, she felt the ridges of unsmooth skin. She swallowed hard as she walked into the bathroom to get ready. It was time to move on. Life was too depressing here, and if she stayed, she might consider trying to take her own life.

  The phone rang, interrupting her morbid thoughts, and she walked back over to the nightstand and lifted her cell phone. It was her brother Eddie. He, Lance, and Tyler wanted to drive out here to get her and bring her back themselves, but she’d turned down their offer. She figured driving the ten or so hours in her Jeep wouldn’t be too bad. She had decided to leave the furniture behind as she sold the condo fully furnished. Most of her belongings, like clothing and mementos, she’d shipped out to home and they would arrive tomorrow.

  “Hey, what’s up?” she asked Eddie as she answered the phone.

  “There’s a storm coming in tonight. It should be finished by the time you leave tomorrow morning, but I just wanted to be sure to call you, so you’re careful driving.”

  “I’ll be fine. I’m going to take my time. I might stop along the way, instead of driving right through. It depends on how I feel.”

  “Well, don’t push it. When you’re tired, the last thing you should be doing is operating a motor vehicle.”

  She chuckled. “Okay, Dad.”

  He chuckled back. “Listen, you, we can’t wait until you’re back home. I’ve been worried about you.”

  She could hear the speaker in the background. She knew he was at the firehouse and it brought on emotions she was trying to gain control of again. She grew up around the firehouse in New Jersey where her dad was now the chief.

  She swallowed the lump of emotion in her throat.

  “I’ll be home soon. This is tough, Eddie.”

  “I know, angel. But you’ll have the crew here to help you get through it.”

  “I’d better get moving. I want to get the Jeep packed, and take care of the final cleanup of the condo before I go.”

  “Okay, keep us posted on where you are, but pull over to call us. No talking or texting on the phone.”

  “Geez, how have I ever survived without you?” she teased.

  “Listen, I’ve seen some seriously disturbing accidents because of texting and driving. I have to go. The bell just went off. Figures, an hour before my shift is through. Love you, angel.”

  “Love you, too. Be safe,” she said as the call disconnected.

  She felt the tightness in her chest, that fear she got when thinking about fires and even about her family of firefighters and the fact that they had to go on all kinds of calls to risk their lives to save others.

  She stood up and wiped the tears from her eyes. Heading home was a good thing, not something she should fear. She would have her own apartment over the garage, so her independence wasn’t taken away. She would find a job as soon as she felt up to writing and being creative, and then she would move on with her life.

  Life. Why do I get to still have a life? Why didn’t the fire take me, like it took Matt and all the others? Why did I have to be that lone survivor buried under the rubble? The miracle the media referred to me as? Why me? Why didn’t I die, too?

  Chapter 1

  Angelina Martelli stood in the apartment above the garage. She fixed the comforter set, arranged the assorted throw pillows, and centered the seashell one, embellished with pale beige sequins. She hoped that Serefina liked it. She wanted her to feel at home but also as independent as possible. She ran the palm of her hand over the comforter and then looked around at the large space. It had been a small two-car garage and now was a full apartment, one bedroom up, a small room downstairs that would make a great office for Serefina, and a huge kitchen. There was an open floor plan so the kitchen flowed into the living room and the main entrance. She had a nice view toward the ocean, and a small balcony off sliders in the main bedroom to enjoy sunsets on.

  She smiled to herself as she thought about having Serefina back home. The tightness in her chest had remained there for quite some time. Serefina was so set on going away for school, leaving her family to prove how independent she was, that it had been difficult to let her go.

  The tears stung Angelina’s eyes. My poor baby has gone through so much. I’m so worried about her.

  She thought about the tragedy, and about nearly losing her daughter. She also thought about the firefighter Serefina was seeing, and how serious it was. Although the family never had the opportunity to meet him in person, he sounded so wonderful over the phone. Serefina seemed in love, and as her mom, that frightened her. Being the wife of a firefighter, and now the mother of three sons who fell into the family profession, gave her a lot of sleepless nights, and put fear into her heart. Being married to a fireman was intense, and she worried a lot, fearing that Marty may not return from a call, and on top of it she feared for her three sons. They were wild and crazy. A lot crazier than her husband had been twenty years ago. But somehow she survived it. Somehow with the grace of God, the prayers and the faith had brought them all home safe and sound each and every night.

  Her main concern now would be for Serefina. She had never shared the details of that night, but it had been a miracle that she survived. Marty got the story from the witnesses and firefighters involved. Her boyfriend, Matt O’Reilly, was heading up in the ranks. He had a great future ahead of him and was an outstanding man. Serefina might never get over losing him, but if being home gave her better peace of mind, or helped to build up her confidence again, and move on, then Angelina was going to do everything she could to help her.

  The cell phone rang interrupting her thoughts, and she smiled when she saw that it was her husband.

  “Hi, Marty, what’s going on?”

  “Eddie heard from Serefina. She’s definitely coming home.”

  “I can’t wait to see her and to hold her in my arms. Nine months was too long.”

  “Well, if we had our way, she would have come back home with us then.”

  She heard her husband’s concern. Those five days had been deeply emotional. Serefina had gone through twelve separate funerals, including Matt’s. She lost weight and looked sick until some friends of Matt’s started coming over and helping her through the mourning process. Marty begged her to come home and she declined. It had caused a bit
of a fight.

  “I know, honey, but she needed to handle this her way.”

  “Her way? She’s coming back now because things aren’t getting better. You heard what Walter told Eddie. She talked about taking her own life.”

  Angelina’s throat clogged up and tears stung her eyes.

  “But she didn’t. She may have talked about it, felt that way in a state of emotional turmoil, but she didn’t attempt it. She’ll be with us now and we’ll do whatever we can to help her. So what time will you be home?”

  “I’m sorry, Angelina. I didn’t mean to blurt that out and upset you. It’s weighed heavily on my mind for weeks. I can’t wait to hold her in my arms and show her that she’s meant to live and that she’s a survivor.”

  “That’s going to be hard for her to understand, Marty, but we’ll try. The best thing we can do is to love her, and be here for her.”

  “Agreed. See you at seven. Love ya, doll.”

  She smiled. “Love you, too, Martelli,” she countered and he chuckled before getting off the phone.

  Angelina took one last look around the room before descending the stairs. She closed her eyes and prayed to God.

  Please watch over my baby girl. Please help her to see that life’s worth living, and you have plans for her.

  Chapter 2

  Ace heard the door open and close. He saw the shadow go down the hall and immediately knew it was Ice. “Hey, what are you doing getting in this late?” he asked in a hard whisper, then raised his head up from the pillow to look at the alarm clock.

  Ice pushed the door open a little wider. “Sorry if I woke you. Late night. I’m showering and then heading to bed.” Ice’s shoulder-length blond hair was pulled back in a pony at the base of his neck. Ace’s brother was a big guy. It ran in the family.

  “We have to be at the station in three fucking hours.”

  “I know, I know. I’ll be fine. Good night.” He walked down the hallway.

  “More like fucking morning,” Ace snapped and then snuggled under the blanket and closed his eyes. His brother had been acting funny lately. He was sneaking out and making excuses of why he couldn’t hang out on certain nights of the week. He also returned late, too. Getting to bed three fucking hours before their shift was not a good thing in their line of work. Firefighters needed to be sharp and ready for the action. If Chief Martelli knew, he’d be pissed. What the hell was Ice up to?

  He can’t be seeing someone. Hell, none of them had much interest lately. It was the same old thing. Women threw themselves at them because they wanted to be with a firefighter. Some wanted to show them off like a grand prize and others just wanted to say that they fucked a firefighter. Not that he turned them down. He and his brothers did their share to make the fantasies a reality, but the shit was getting old. Things just weren’t the same since Marco died. He’d had a way of pulling them all together. Now Ace, Ice, and Bull were growing further and further apart. Maybe he should talk to them again about Marco’s idea?

  He shook his head. Ménage relationships were for other people, like for their friends. The way their relations were now, growing further and further apart, they’d be lucky if they stuck to living in the same house and working in the same station house. Things just weren’t the same anymore. Not since that arsonist took Marco’s life.

  He rolled over and covered his head with the pillow. He needed the last three hours of sleep. Maybe he’d talk to his brothers this weekend on the boat? Or at their parents’ restaurant café. That was another thing. Visiting their parents on the boardwalk café always led to the same thing. Their mom wanted them to leave the fire department and work with them at the restaurant. The small café and breakfast nook they’d started three years ago had become so popular they needed to expand. Their original idea was to serve food late, especially for first responders and then serve breakfast early, as they got of their night shifts.

  Now it was a full restaurant, serving boardwalk favorites all day and night long as well as breakfast. Sullivan’s was a gold mine.

  He glanced at the clock and cringed as he realized his thinking cost him thirty minutes. Closing he eyes, he focused on sleeping and not his brother Ice.

  * * * *

  The smoldering ashes left over by a four-alarm fire filtered through the air. Detective Buddy Landers spoke with his brother, arson investigator, Trent Landers by the scene.

  “What do you think, Trent?” Buddy asked him. The coroner had arrived to gather what was believed to be left of two males and a female, charred to death.

  “I’ll need to take some samples and collect some more evidence,” Trent stated as he pulled off his gloves and locked up what he had collected to go to the lab.

  “But I can tell you where I believe the point of origin was.”

  “Okay, I was thinking the kitchen stove and gas line.”

  “There were accelerants found near the basement back door, the front entryway, as well as in the kitchen. I think that was our arson’s igniter.”

  “Do you think the set of candles burning in the kitchen added to that explosion?”

  “I think that the person responsible ensured that some sort of flame was present when that gas released through the house. The master bedroom is directly above the kitchen. The fireplace wasn’t turned on, and there was no way the arsonist knew they would light candles.”

  “That’s why the fire was set by the front door?” Buddy asked Trent and Trent nodded.

  “The person responsible for this deadly fire strolled up to the front door while these three people went about their business and they set the fire. Then they high-tailed it out of here before the explosion.”

  “Shit,” Buddy said and then ran his fingers through his hair.

  “Do you think it’s our guy?” Buddy asked, feeling his gut clench with trepidation.

  “No. But there’s something about this target that doesn’t seem right. You’ll need to do your investigative thing, bro, while my men and I do ours. I say find out who these people were who lived here, what they did for a living, and whether they have any enemies. We’ll work on the evidence to put them away when you catch them,” Trent said and then winked.

  Buddy chuckled as he shook his head. “I thought you’d be a better help than that,” he teased.

  “Sorry, this isn’t television, this is real life.”

  “Yeah, tell that to the victims’ families.”

  Buddy walked away to let his brother continue his work as he spoke with the patrol officers.

  “I want the entire neighborhood interviewed. Someone had to have seen or heard something. This person walked right up to the front door and set a fire. Let’s move. Canvass the entire neighborhood and don’t minimize even the smallest detail. Call me on my cell if anything comes up,” he told the group of officers and then dismissed them so they could begin.

  Buddy looked around the nice, upper-middle-class neighborhood, only a few blocks from the beach.

  He didn’t like the feeling he had, and he worried about his brothers as well as his cousins, Ace, Bull, and Ice. Marco’s killer was still out there, and all of them were determined to find him and put him away for life.

  Chapter 3

  Serefina was minutes from her family home, two blocks from the beach on the New Jersey shore. Using her Bluetooth, she called the house and told her mom she would be there soon. As she drove down the final strip of road viewing all the changes and updates to homes and storefronts, her heart began to lift. The moment she realized that, she frowned as she thought about Matt. He never even had the opportunity to see her childhood home or to even meet her family. The tears stung her eyes and she took a deep breath then released it.

  This was why she came back. She needed the strength and the love of her family right now, more than anything else.

  Serefina pulled the Jeep down the long road that led to the private house with one of the largest lots around town. The house looked gorgeous even now, as the sun began to set, shadowing out so m
any of the things she remembered about her home. The large gardens, the cobblestone walkways that led to the pool in the back, and the separate drive that led to the detached garage, a renovated apartment, just for her. Now that Eddie and Lance moved down toward the end of the pier and into their own bachelor pad, it was only Tyler at home.

  Before she even placed the Jeep in park, her family was coming out of the front door to greet her. They were all there. Her mother, father, three brothers, and even Grandpa and Grandma Martelli. She turned off the engine to her Jeep and got out, feeling the aches and pains from her long drive, as well as the remnants of her injuries as they all greeted her.

  “We were starting to get worried,” Eddie stated as he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight.

  “We weren’t all worried, just Eddie,” Lance teased as Eddie released her.

  Lance hugged her next. “Hey, Fina, missed you, angel.”

  She smiled, feeling the tears in her eyes. “I missed you, too.”

  Her mother hugged her next, then her father, who held her a little longer than she expected, and she squeezed him back. “I’m okay, Daddy,” she whispered as the tears fell from her eyes, and then Tyler hugged them both.

  “How about you let me see my only granddaughter,” Grandpa stated and her father released her to his dad, who hugged her close and then patted her head before Grandma hugged her hello. She smiled wide.

  “I was hoping to get here in full sunlight so I could take in the entire place.” She looked around, while Tyler still held her hand.

  He gave it a squeeze.

  “You have all the time in the world to explore home again, Fina,” he told her, calling her by the childhood nickname her brothers always used. She smiled. It was instant comfort being here with them. It was as if she never left.